The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1887-12-02
WRECKED sY A HEATER.
A Boiler in the Kitchen Ss the Kirby
House. Milwaukee, Explodes-A Woman
TilIeI and a Number of Girls More or
Less Seriously Hurt.

A Boiler in the Kitchen Ss the Kirby
House. Milwaukee, Explodes-A Woman
Yilled and a Number of Girls More or
Less Seriously Hurt.
MILWAUKEE. Wis, Nov. 29.--For several
blocks around the Kirby House dull deto-
ifaaitn was heard at $50 o'c eek yesterday
morning, followed by a shock as though
great volume of COMPRESSED air had been
Suddenly liberated. People in the immedi-
ate sieinity of the hotel heard the rum
bling OF falling walls, the crash of glass IN
a hundred windows ahiyered into thou
sand splinters. the frenMsd shrfeks OF
women in pain or terror, and saw huge
metal object rise high in the air through
the Very center of the building and then
fall upon the tafted roof VITA a bang. IL
was an explosion Which wrecked Vhe
rear part Of the hotel between the wings
and the main building from the bases
tnent to the top floor, burying wholly or
partly dozen of the dining-roOm and
kitchen girls and several of the male en-
bloyes of the hotel, killihg one woman OUT
right and iniuring twenty other persons,
two seriously and perhaps fatally. The
water boilerin the kitchen. which caused the
explosion shot upward like bullet from
gun, crashing through three intervene
ing floors and the roof as though the part1-
lions were tissue paper, and rose some thirty
or forty feet above the building. Mrs E NJ
Gage, the second cook Iii the Kirby House,
was killed Instantly The wounded are:
Apns Kennedy, back broken and otherwise
seriously niHred; Carrie Ellufson, very badly
scalded, condition sYitieal; Frank Hambel, arm
broken and otherwise injured; Maggie Carri-
gan, badly scalded; Mary Afbvelle, badly
ATann hrllic nh
Nora Dougherty, ribs broken aid
badly bruised; Alice Batch, bruised, not
seriously; Julia Feltmeyer, injured
about the head William Kroeger, ankle
sprained and bruised; Sanford Beckwith,
slightly cut and bruised; Nellie Thompson,
face cut badly and one eye injured and part of
enc ear gone; Maggie Theis. head and hands
cut; Annie Meyer; face cut; Katie Killan, face
and hands badly eht Emma Salzer, similar
injuries; Gussie Teiga, ear badly cut; Charles
ziong, wrist badly cut.
just across the narrow alley in the rear OF
the hotel is tie fSest wall of the Sentinel
building The terrific force OF the explosion
shattered every window facing OH the alley,
hurled bricks, broken fragments OF glass
and other missiles into the bindery on the
lower floor id the rear of the eounting-rGQm,
and injured six of tie girls and one of the
boys employed there. Faciiig two of the
bindery windows is bench at which q
dozen bindery girls were seated engaged Ia
work When the missiles were hurled
through the windows, and some of them the
entire length Of the room, they received the
full shock right i'll their faces, and the only
wonder is that they were not all killed.
When the girls felt the bits of glass cutting
their faces they set up chorus of screams,
and with bleeding faces rushed out into the
counting-room through the front door of
the building and across the street, with the
exception of Nellie Thompson, who tainted
when she had run half way across the room.
People attracted to the main entrance of
the hotel on East Water street saw frantic
lot of guests and chambermaids tumbling
downstairs and madly rushing for the door,
crushing each other into jam against the
in-opening doors in their anxiety to reach
the street, while those in front crushed
their fists through the glass regardless OF
cut hands, their only thought being to get
out of building which they supposed was
about TO fall upon them.
moment later and the fire department
came rafting to the scene. The men
grabbed their implements, and with no
heed to personal danger rushed into the
pile of debris to rescue the wounded and
recover the dead A number of the fremen
braced the threatening floor overhead,
threw ropes over and around it, and in that
manner made it safe for the moment, while
their comrades dug and sought in the rub.
bish and timbers for those who might be
buried there.
Of those who had been buried in the pile
of fallen walls and timbers all but one were
ayfr n6 OriUa in oil. al "a
This one Mrs Gage, could not be found for
| several hours, when her dead body was dis
covered in the alley Under huge mass Of
wreckage. The body was horribly mutilated,
| the face being utterly unacceptable. She
was widow and leaves one son, aged 8
years At the time of the accident she was
engaged directly behind the fatal heater.
Her death must have been instantaneous.
The front apartments of the hotel were
transformed into q temporary hospital,
where tender hands and members OF the
medical profession did all within their pow.
er to alleviate the sufferings of the victims.
The explosion was evidently caused by
so.e of the pipes about the range and
water-tank having been frozen during the
night The force of the explosion direct
upon the hotwa tank, was sufficient to
force it upwards through four floors and
! the roof. 1t was found on the roof OF the
hotel, twenty feet from the hole through
which it had forced it's way.
The wounded were all doing well last
night, and the physicians were of the opinion
that all would recover except Annie Kennedy
and Carrie Olson, who are still in d?n-
ger. Experts say that considerable
portion of the rear wall will have to
come down. The house is a strongly built
one on the old-fashioned plan, with division
walls and partitions of brick. This fact
saved the building and prevented the ac-
cident from being worse. Guests occupy
rooms as usual, but no meals can be served.
The damage to the building is about Sd, 900
or So, 900
1.-The Kirby House is one of the pioneer
hotels of the Northwest, and is perhaps most
widely known of any Of the hotels in Mil
waukee 1t was built in 1914 by Daniel Wells,
Jr, who intended it for a kind Of boarding.
house. year later it was opened as a hotel,
under the name of the City. The original
structure was 60x50 feet, and two-and-one-half
stories high. The lower floor was occupied as
a posl-ofice. In 1916 Abner Kirby bought
a half interest and the proprietors built an adj
dition 70x32 feet. In 1854 it was leased to Ed
ward Burton, who opened it as the Walker
House, named for George Walker. Under his
management it was reputed to be the best hotel
on the upper lakes. In five years Mr. Burton
made about 900 and retired In 1865 Mr. Kirby
became the proprietor, built an addition on
East Water street 40x120 feet, raised the old
hotel, and named it the Kirby House. From
that time to 1879 it was run by Mr. KIRBY and
his father-in-law. Mr.. Case The latter then
retired, and Mr.. Kirby managed the house I'M
til about d year ago, when Beckwith & Josslyn,
the present managers, took charge of it. The
hotel now has frontage of LOOKED feet on the
southeast corner of Mason and East Water
streets.
Coal Famine Feared.
ST. PAUL, Mimi, Nov. 29.-The announce
ment comes from Duluth that the last coal
steamer for the season unloaded it's cargo
Sunday Nearly j, 600 900 tons have been
taken there, over 100000 tons more than